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Latvala admits he became obsessed with copying Ogier at VW WRC

Jari-Matti Latvala has admitted he felt "lost" at the end of the 2016 World Rally Championship after trying too hard to emulate Sebastien Ogier at Volkswagen.

The 2016 season was Latvala's worst in the WRC, as he finished only sixth in the standings and 156 points behind title-winning team-mate Ogier.

Latvala admitted he had focused too much on how Ogier was driving.

"Everything went wrong and it was a different situation at Volkswagen," he told Autosport.

"I didn't win [the title] because I tried to drive like Sebastien.

"I was so confused in my driving, I was trying to do everything like him all of the time.

"I was looking at the data from my engineers and looking at how he was using the brakes - I tried to change everything and do the same.

"I even had brake support under the pedals like he had. I was trying everything."

Over their four years together at VW, Ogier won four titles and 31 rallies, with Latvala winning just nine events.

Ogier also outscored the Finn by 1088 points to 675 through that period.

Latvala now admits he should have spent much less time thinking about Ogier.

"At the end of last year, I was so confused, everything was so difficult," he said.

"I just didn't know, I was asking: 'How should I drive?'

"I was going over everything. I had tried to copy everything Seb was doing and this is why, when I was in Volkswagen, I had no chance.

"I couldn't concentrate on the job I was supposed to be doing because all of the time I was looking at what he was doing.

"I forgot about my own driving style and I totally focused on doing the same as him."

After VW's exit at the end of last season, Ogier moved to M-Sport while Latvala landed at the new Toyota programme.

They then finished first and second with their new teams in last month's 2017 opener in Monte Carlo.

Latvala recently said the atmosphere at Toyota alongside Juho Hanninen was more like what he had been used to at Ford with Mikko Hirvonen before going up against Ogier at VW.

Zdroj: autosport.com